The Vatican Information Service is a news service, founded in the Holy See Press Office, that provides information about the Magisterium and the pastoral activities of the Holy Father and the Roman Curia...[+]

Last 5 news

Monday, May 12, 2014

Vatican City, 10 May 2014 (VIS) –
This afternoon, in St. Peter's Square, the Holy Father met with
teachers, parents, educators, pupils and other workers within the
context of Italian schools.
The event was organised by the Italian Episcopal Conference with the
project, “The Church for the School”. At 4.15 p.m. the Holy
Father toured St. Peter's Square and Via della Conciliazione by jeep,
greeting those present. At 5 p.m. the meeting began with a greeting
from Cardinal Angelo Bagnasco, president of the Italian Episcopal
Conference, and Professor Stefania Giannini, the Italian minister for
education. Various participants shared testimonies, along with
moments of music and other entertainments.

Finally, Pope Francis addressed those
present. “We can see that this is a demonstration 'for', not
'against'!”, he said. It is not a complaint, it is a celebration! A
celebration for the school. We are well aware that there are problems
and things that do not function well. But you are here, we are here
because we love school”. He commented that he too, for various
reasons, loved school: “because it is the synonym for openness to
reality. Going to school means opening the mind and the heart to
reality, to its wealth of aspects and dimensions. This is valuable.
In the first years we take a 360 degree approach to learning, and
then gradually we focus in one direction, and finally we specialise.
But if one has learnt how to learn, this remains for ever, and one
remains open to reality! And teachers are always the first who must
remain open to reality, with the mind always open to learning. A
teacher who is not open to learning is not a good teacher, and is not
interesting. The pupils understand and snub him or her. They are
attracted to teachers with open and 'incomplete' thought, who look
for something more, and they transmit this attitude to their
students”.

A second reason is that “the school
is a place of encounter”, and the Pope added that “This is
fundamental in the age of growth, as a complement to the family. …
The school is the first society to integrate with the family. The
school and the family are not in opposition to one another. They are
complementary, and therefore it is important that they collaborate
between themselves with mutual respect. … This reminds me of an
African proverb: 'It takes a village to raise a child'”. Finally,
the Pontiff declared that he loved school “because it educates us
in truth, in what is good and beautiful. Education cannot be neutral.
It is either positive or negative; either it enriches or it
impoverishes; either it enables a person to grow or it lessens, even
corrupts him. The mission of schools is to develop a sense of truth,
of what is good and beautiful. And this occurs through a rich path
made up of many ingredients. This is why there are so many subjects –
because development is the result of different elements that act
together and stimulate intelligence, knowledge, the emotions, the
body, and so on”.

“If something is true, it is good
and beautiful; if it is beautiful, it is good and true; if it is
good, it is true and it is beautiful. And together, these elements
enable us to grow and help us to love life, even when we are not
well, even in the midst of many problems. True education enables us
to love life and opens us to the fullness of life”.